Much Ado About Nothing
by pwincesst
Summary: After high school, Carl, Cindy and Libby head to New York for College. Jimmy and Sheen stay in Texas. At the end of freshman year, Jimmy and Sheen are going to spend the summer in the Big Apple...
1. Chapter 1

_AN: I got the inspiration for this one watching Much Ado About Nothing… enjoy!_

The gang has been split in two since high school graduation; Cindy went to Columbia to study journalism, Libby went to Juilliard to major in music, and Carl is studying zoology at NYU. The three of them have an apartment together. Jimmy and Sheen, on the other hand, have remained in Texas. Jimmy chose to go back to Pomona, to major in astrophysics, while Sheen was at community college, studying animation. His first year results were surprisingly good; he's done well enough to transfer to a better school, if he wants to that is… Since school was out for the summer, Sheen has been reminiscing about their high school days, particularly since they've received an invite from Carl to spend the summer in the Big Apple.

"Man, Jim, can you believe it's been a YEAR?"

'Yeah, time flies when you're having fun, doesn't it?'

"Fun… you call staring at your test tubes and microscopes FUN… man at least in high school you had more of a life…" Sheen's reply sounded slightly bitter, even to his own ears. A defensive Jimmy didn't seem to notice, however.

'Well… I'm getting a lot more work done now that Cindy… I mean, everyone's not here to distract me'

"Everyone, huh? I'm still here…" Sheen replies with a smirk.

A defensive Jimmy tries to change the subject. Both boys' minds, however, are thousands of miles away, in a city known as the Big Apple. They sit in silence awhile, until Jimmy breaks it.

'You know… Carl's staying with Cindy and Libby'

"Yeah… the traitor! He split up the three amigops!"

'NOT the point Sheen… Anyway he can't be having much fun with Cindy around all the time… yelling at him all day… She probably gets him to cook and clean for them, and do her homework, and…'

"Dude, she's not THAT bad…" Sheen interjects.

'She pushed me in her pool at her graduation party… right when I was about to make my move… on… Betty' Jimmy was indignant.

"You did kind of dodge a bullet with that one. Remember how she dumped Nick for Eustace last month? That could have been you, man."

'Still… the girl has permanent PMS… Carl's probably miserable over there..' a stubborn Jimmy insists.

"He's living with two gorgeous girls, in a sweet penthouse near 5th Avenue, courtesy of Cindy's mom… I hardly think he's suffering, Jim"

'I'd rather live in a rent controlled hovel than with… hey, did you say TWO gorgeous girls?'

"Yeah… you and Cindy may have had your problems, especially in high school, but we got along pretty well, and she is good looking…"

'I know Cindy's beautiful,' Jimmy gets a little dreamy when he replies 'but Libby?'

"Dude, Libby was the most gorgeous girl in school"

'Sheen… she wasn't'

"YES she was!"

Jimmy sighs, knowing that there was no way Sheen was going to back down. He'd always found Libby to be attractive enough, but she lacked that spark of intelligence mixed with mischief, and a little bit of fire that Jimmy finds irresistible. Personally, he prefers green eyes on girls, himself. He shrugs, thinking that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.

'I don't know why you never asked her out in high school'

"I guess I was too busy trying to become someone… who deserved her. I had my eye on getting into college; as it was I barely got in" Sheen seems thoughtful, and a little pensive. Both are unusual for him.

'You're doing great now… you're even looking at better schools for transfers…'

"Yeah, well… we've all moved on since high school, haven't we?" The boys exchanged tired smiles, as they pull up at the airport.

Meanwhile, in New York, Cindy is NOT in the best of moods.

"Carl, sweetie," She calls in what is known as her dangerously sweet voice.

'Yes…' Carl responds nervously. He knows his housemate well, and is no stranger to her syrupy _I'm going to kill you_ tone…

"Is there a reason why you invited Neutron to OUR house… without telling Libby or me?" her emerald eyes glint with anger.

'SHEEN'S COMING HERE?! Um… I mean… not cool, Carl,' a tentative voice chimes in.

'They are my friends… and… I … missed them… kind of' Carl mumbles a reply, not daring to look the angry blonde in the eye.

"I know this has been a hard year for you… but, you should have told us.. I'd have gone home for the summer…" Cindy softens considerably seeing her friends obvious distress.

'That's why I didn't say anything, Cin… I didn't want you to leave'

'Girl, you be trippin…' Libby comes out of her reverie to admonish her best friend.

Cindy fumes silently, while the other two, who are smart enough to know that saying ANYTHING at this point would upset her further, watch her quietly.

"So… how's Neutron doing in school, anyway? I promised I'd cook him a 5 course meal if he did better than me at college…"

'He's got a 4.0 GPA… and is on the dean's list…' Carl replied, in a slightly hard tone.

"No Nobel prize yet?" Cindy brightens up considerably.

'Girl, what is your problem? Jimmy's a great guy… a GENIUS… stuffed with all that jazz you've been saying you look for in a guy' Libby, at this point feels the need to say something.

"Exactly… he's nothing more than a stuffed man!"

'Whatever… you KNOW you always-

'THEY'RE AT THE AIRPORT' Carl interjects, after reading a text. For the last few months, he'd somehow become irritated every time Libby brought up the subject of Jimmy and Cindy. Every time, he'd find a way to head her off, and change the subject, much to Cindy's relief. She always supposed it was because Carl could sense her discomfort. Carl, on the other hand, knew otherwise…


	2. Chapter 2

Meanwhile, on the plane to New York, Jimmy and Sheen had met a new/old 'friend'. Eustace Strych had seen them on the flight, and made his way to the coach section of the plane to have a chat. This action, alone, surprised them, as Eustace was known to never even accept a ride in a car that was not a limousine, at least. According to him, the fabric on a Mercedes car seat would be "murder" on his "sensitive skin". He'd grown considerably better looking over the years, and was dating Jimmy's elementary school crush, Betty Quinlan. Sheen and Jimmy were immediately suspicious when they saw his buck toothed grin.

"What do you want, Strych?" spits Jimmy. Despite the fact that they never really got in each others' way in high school, Jimmy had never forgotten all the 'get rid of Jimmy Neutron' moments financed by Eustace in elementary school.

'Why… I'm here to bury the hatchet, of course..' Eustace replies with his familiar supercilious tone.

"We don't trust you. You're a girl-stealer." Sheen declares, earning a pitying smile from Eustace.

'Now, now, we mustn't dwell on the past… if you must know I'm a changed man.. being with Betty taught me that I shouldn't hold on to grudges… in fact she's coming to join me on this trip… and we'd love to take you two, along with your other friends out on the town one night…'

"I don't trust him, Jimmy" Sheen responds in a not so subtle whisper.

'On your way to see Cynthia and Liberty? I'm sure they'd like to be taken out in style… for a proper night out on the town. I know Betty wouldn't mind if we all went out together… old friends that we all are..' Eustace smiles with a calculating look in his eye.

"Thanks… I guess.." Jimmy is still suspicious, but he's been hit at his weak point. The weak point that he would never admit to, of course.

'Yeah man… It would be cool to show them a good time in THEIR city' Sheen's enthusiasm for taking the girls out has overcome his earlier mistrust of the bucktoothed billionaire.

"I can't wait to rub it in Vortex's face that I'm on the dean's list" Jimmy rubs his hands in anticipation.

'Er… Jim… you do realize she's on the deans list too… and landed an internship with the New York Times…'

"As a FRESHMAN?" Jimmy's expression is one of shock, horror and… admiration.

'Well, you DO know how girls nowadays get ahead…' Eustace was trying to find his way back into the conversation, and waggles his eyebrows suggestively.

"What are you implying, Strych?" Jimmy's eyes glint dangerously.

'Yeah… Cindy's cool'

'Er.. I mean… Girls nowadays are so smart… and talented… just like my Betty…'

"You… really do care for her then?"

'Of course, James. Do you think I'd bother asking her out when she was already dating someone else otherwise? I do make her happy, you know…'

'I guess… that kind of makes it OK' Sheen relents.

The two boys hold out their fists for Eustace to punch, which he does with an awkward chuckle.

'I say.. we're landing. Would you chaps care for a lift? I'm sure Blix wouldn't mind, and the stretch limousine's oodles of fun'

"Are you kidding… wait until Vortex sees us arrive in a limo. I bet she'll turn as green as her eyes.." Jimmy breaks off dreamily, then coughs as he notices the amused stares of his traveling companions.

'In that case, you must stay with me at the Plaza. I'm sure the girls would be impressed…'

'The PLAZA? That's awesome…' Sheen is highly enthusiastic.

"Yeah, we were going to crash on their couch… this is pretty cool of you, Eustace."

'I can be 'cool' as you put it when I choose, James' Eustace replies smoothly.

The boys chat amiably as they make their way through the airport, and all the way to the house. Meanwhile, Carl, Cindy and Libby are frantically preparing for their guests arrival. Cindy's taken extra care to prepare the bedding, giving up her own blanket to make up the couch, and cooking, as she expects the boys to be tired. They are putting the finishing touches on the sofa bed when they hear a loud buzz.

'THEY'RE HERE!'

"Oh… that's them alright… with… Eustace? Girl, what is going on?"

'Eustace? What, did Neutron hit himself with his own hypno-ray or something?'

'Not that I can think of… anyway I'm supposed to be letting them in…' Carl responds.

'OK… now be COOL. NO ONE is going to ask them about Eustace until they mention it themselves' Cindy cautions the little group.

When the boys enter, however, she bursts out, "What's HE doing here?"

'Hello to you too, Vortex.'

"Allow me… My dearest Cynthia, you must accept my humblest apologies for my errant behavior in my youth. What you see before you is a changed man. I had the good fortune of meeting with James and Santiago on the plane, and they have been gracious enough to forgive and forget. I only hope you can do the same.."

Eustace accompanied his little speech by bending on one knee, grabbing Cindy's hand and kissing it. He seems oblivious to the hard stares and twin scowls on the faces of Jimmy and Carl.

'Anyway, Vortex, we won't be in your way. We're staying with Eustace at the Plaza…'

"I rushed around all morning cleaning up, and you're all staying at the Plaza? Real cool, Neutron"

Meanwhile, Sheen and Libby have been looking at each other, warm blushes coloring their cheeks and shy smiles on their lips. They seem to be pretty oblivious to their surroundings.

"Would you look at that, Vortex… positively repulsive" Jimmy nods towards their best friends.

"Nauseating, is what I call it…"

'Some people call it… love?' Carl looks at Cindy when he speaks.

"Love? Ha… I'll never fall in love" Jimmy scoffs in response.

'You know that's not true..' Carl answers quietly.

"It most certainly is! I'm grateful for the fact that a woman brought me into this world and raised me, but that's it. I'm going to die a bachelor, baby."

"All of us should be grateful for that, Neutron. I thank God I'm like you in that area; I'd rather hear Humphrey bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me."

"I hope you stay in that frame of mind, Vortex, so that no man ends up with a scratched face!"

"Scratching couldn't make a face like yours any worse, Neutron!"

"You talk more than a parrot, Vortex"

"A bird with MY tongue is better than anyone with YOURS, Neutron"

"I wish my CAR could run as fast as your tongue!" Jimmy suddenly looks down, and realizes his close proximity to the angry blonde. They've been walking towards each other as they argue, and he suddenly notices her lightly flushed face and sparkling emerald eyes, seemingly illuminated by sheer fury. His heart begins to thump wildly, and he hurriedly changes the subject.

"A-anyway… I'm here to see Carl…"

'Took you long enough, Jim' Carl's hard stare surprises Jimmy, but is unnoticed by everyone else in the room.

'Anyway my good man, I shall take my leave. I need to pick up Betty from the airport. My lovely Cynthia, it's always a pleasure….' Eustace takes Cindy's hand and kisses it again, much to the annoyance of two boys in the room.

"We should probably go with him… he's our ride.. right Sheen?"

'Oh… right…' Sheen reluctantly tears himself away from the dark skinned beauty in front of him.

'Sheen… wait!'

'Yeah…?' Sheen hopefully turns around and looks at Libby

"We-we're having a party tomorrow night… costumes… would you guys like to come?"

'Wouldn't miss it for the world…'

With a last long look, he turns and follows his two companions out. Eustace leaves to pick up some flowers for Betty, leaving Jimmy and Sheen to wait for him in the lobby of their friends' apartment building.

'Isn't she the most beautiful girl you've ever met..'

"Yeah, she is… wait.. YOU find her beautiful?" Jimmy's response shifted from dreamy agreement to suspicion.

'Of course… Libby's only gotten more beautiful since high school.. can you believe she's in Juilliard now? Learning to dance? She's so…'

"Not THAT again… I thought you were over her!" Jimmy groaned.

'I can't help it.. I liked her in high school, but didn't dare to love her… I had college on my mind… but now… I'm actually doing well in school. I can transfer to a better school easily… I've actually got a future… and seeing her again… Her huge chocolate eyes, that smile, that WAY she has when she looks at me… it's all just reminding me how much I liked her in high school… I know it seems sudden… but I think I loved her all along…'

'Who are we talking about' Carl seems to have joined in the conversation.

"Your FRIEND is in LOVE. WITH LIBBY." Jimmy seems quite indignant.

'If you do, that's great. She's a great girl, who deserves you, Sheen.'

'I KNOW I love her.'

'And I KNOW she deserves to be loved.'

"And I KNOW that I can't see how she can be loved, and how anyone can say she deserves Sheen."

'Why not, Jimmy?' Sheen's voice is uncharacteristically cold.

Jimmy suddenly catches sight of Cindy, who has come down to bring some food for the boys. She thought the food at the Plaza might be too pricey for the college freshmen, and had packed the meal that she had slaved over earlier that day. Seeing what appears to be a serious conversation, she stands aside, smiling tentatively.

"Well… look at Cindy. She's intelligent, talented, passionate… and more beautiful than the first day of spring… ahem… I mean… if she WASN'T such an annoying, loudmouthed, bossy, sarcastic… anyway… my point is… that SHE'S a better choice than Libby… and hey… Eustace is here!" Jimmy fidgets under Carl's cold stare and Sheen's bemused expression.

'The car is ready, boys. Carl, you are most welcome to join us, if you wish. Make it a boy's summer.'

'Well.. I'd hate to leave Cindy and Libby…'

"Go on, we'll be fine" Cindy smiles sweetly at him. " Libby and I could probably use a little girl time, anyway." She gives Sheen an appraising look as she speaks. With a reassuring smile for Carl, a tentative one for Eustace, a wink for Sheen and mischievous smirk directed at Jimmy, she turns and makes her way to the elevator, while the boys leave.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Hey thanks so much for the reviews… Yes, you're right about the characters, but, as you can probably tell, they're not exact parallels with the play. Freehugs, thanks SO much for the warning, as you can see, I'm reposting everything in a different format. Sucks though, cause I prefer the script format :( Hint: reviews inspire me

The next day, Cindy and Libby are preparing for the party.

"Cleopatra AGAIN, Libs?"

'Shut up, Tinkerbell, or I'll make you call me Your Mighty Fine Royal Fabulousness, again.'

Cindy throws a paper cup at her, as they both grow silent and think back to their trip to Egypt with the boys in elementary school.

"You remember our Egyptian beach party?"

'Yeah… Sheen was surfing in the sand, with me on his shoulders.'

"You've got it BAD…"

'I can't help it… he used to be cute in a hyperactive kind of way… but now… he's handsome… still hyper but he's got ambition and a purpose… and the way he looked at me… I wonder why we never went out in high school'

"It was probably for the best, Libs… you guys are in two different states now…"

'Yeah… but… you know what it's like to be in love…'

"Actually, I don't"

'Cin… you KNOW you loved Jim-'

"I don't know WHAT you're talking about"

'Cin… do you plan on being alone forever…'

"I'll be single… but not alone.. I plan on partying with the bachelors all my life."

Cindy gets up to answer the door, before Libby can protest further. She finds a tall, African American girl with corn rows similar to Libby's. She's dressed in a cat woman suit, standing next to a well built young man dressed as Batman. They're accompanied by a girl who looks like a female version of the boy dressed as Batman, in a Batgirl suit, clutching the arm of a gangly red haired 18 year old dressed as Robin. A handsome, spiky haired boy is dressed as the Joker, while his girlfriend, a petite Asian American, is dressed as Poison Ivy_._

"I see you guys have a theme going on…"

'Batman? Let me guess… Tommy chose the costumes…' Libby has joined Cindy at the door to welcome their friends. Susie, the girl dressed as Catwoman, is at Juilliard with Libby.

'Can I help it that the Dark Knight was a CLASSIC' Tommy, the spiky haired boy defends himself as his friends smile knowingly at him.

'Come on in guys, you're the first ones here… Susie, I can't get over how you and Libby look scarily alike…'

'I'm not sure everyone here would agree, right Phil?' Libby smiles over at Batman, who coughs.

"Er… I think we need to hit the snack table…" Phil responds hurriedly.

"Where are your manners, Philip?"

"My manners are FINE, Lillian… tell your girlfriend to leave me alone, Chuck."

'Sorry… I know better than to take sides with the de Ville twins… I think we should head inside now, anyway…'

'Yeah… we bought a bottle of wine for you guys, too… ice wine, like you like it, Cindy… er… what's wrong, Kim?' Tommy looks over at his girlfriend, who is glaring at him.

'You seem to be awfully aware of Cindy's likes and dislikes, Thomas' Kimi responds frostily.

'Er… so… where's Angelica?'

"Sulking… she wasn't happy that I picked the cat woman outfit before she could…"

'It looks much better on you than it would've looked on her, anyway,' Phil declares, without thinking.

" Really?"

'I mean… ahem… very fetching…' flustered, Phil adjusts his cape.

"Real smooth, Philip…"

"Back off, Lilian…"

As the twins bicker, Cindy and Libby scamper to greet other guests. Meanwhile, Jimmy, Sheen, Carl, Eustace and Betty are on their way. The boys are all dressed as knights, while Betty is dressed as a nurse. She seems chagrined that, with the exception of Eustace, none of the boys have commented on her costume, and chose to sit up front, leaving her boyfriend to talk with his newfound friends.

'I'm going to do it… I'm going to ask Libby out…'

"Are you sure about that, my good man? What if she's not interested? That would be awfully embarrassing. Why don't you ask Carl to speak to her on your behalf?"

'GOOD IDEA! Carl… you gotta help me, man…'

"Sheen… I think it's a better idea to talk to Libby yourself…"

'No way, Jim… if she says no, I'll never be able to face her… Carl.. you HAVE to help me out here…'

After some arguing, some begging, and some silences, Carl reluctantly agrees to talk to her. When they arrive, the three boys light up immediately at the sight of their hostesses. Carl goes off to do his ' job', while Sheen waits nervously aside. Jimmy can't help but notice how Cindy's costume matches her eyes… exactly. He puts on his helmet and heads off to ask her to dance. Neither notice the Libby look alike in the Catwoman outfit, but Eustace does a silent double take at the sight of her.

By the dance floor, Cindy is extremely indignant and, truth be told, hurt.

"You heard WHAT?"

'I do not wish to repeat it, my lady,' Jimmy disguises his voice, enjoying the discomfort on Cindy's face.

"That I was a bossy loudmouth who didn't know what she was talking about half the time… Jimmy Neutron said that!"

'Jimmy Neutron? Who's he?'

"HE is a big show off-y genius, with a head to rival his ego"

'Really…'

"Yeah… he's an arrogant jerk who wouldn't know a good thing if it hit him in the centre of his big head…well…everyone's dancing…"

'Maybe we should.. join them?'

Jimmy leads her over to the dance floor, trying to ignore how good her hand feels in his. Meanwhile, Sheen is still waiting nervously for Carl's answer, when Eustace approaches. Pretending to mistake Sheen for Jimmy, he proceeds to give 'Jimmy' some advice.

"James… you have to stop Carl from talking to Liberty.. .he'll break Santiago's heart…"

'W-what are you talking about… Carl doesn't like Libby…'

"Didn't you see the look on his face when he entered and saw her…He's clearly interested… anyway I'm going to dance with my beautiful nurse. I just thought I'd warn you, James… I certainly don't want any trouble…

With a smirk, Eustace heads off with Betty. A despondent Sheen is soon joined by Jimmy.

"Come on, Sheen… let's go."

'Where?'

"Where? To deal with your own business, of course… Carl's got Libby…"

'Good for him… hope they're happy…'

"You think Carl would stab you in the back like that?"

'I should've listened to you, Jim… I should've spoken to her myself… did you see the look in his eye when he saw her'

Jimmy darkens at this. He did notice the look in Carl's eye when they entered, but he also had seen who the look had been directed to. An uncontrollable wave of jealousy washes over him, and as he sees Cindy approach with Carl and Libby, he suddenly feels the need to escape.

"I've got to go…"

'Come on Jim… you got over the whole hiding from Cindy thing in elementary school!'

"I just… don't want to see her… I'm going to go find Eustace…"

When Cindy approaches, she greets Sheen with a mischievous smile.

"I know you're only happy to see one of us, but we're all here anyway…"

'I don't know what you're talking about, Cindy…'

"Sheen… are you OK?" Carl was quite concerned for his friend.

'I'm FINE…'

"Sheen's neither well, nor sick… nor happy nor sad… He's civil… civil as an orange… with that jealous colour… right?"

'I… think you're right, Cin… but he's got it all wrong… Sheen… I asked Libby out for you… and she said yes…'

'She.. She… said YES!!!'

'Fool… you could have talked to me yourself!' Libby bopped Sheen on the elbow, and is rewarded with a bright smile. They wander off to a corner to be alone. Meanwhile, Cindy watches them with a wistful smile.

"Another happy couple… everyone seems to have that special someone but me…"

'I… I'll find you someone, Cin'… Carl is suddenly shy around his housemate.

"I'd rather have your dad find me someone… why don't you have a brother, Carl?"

'W-will… you go out.. with me?'

"No, Carl…" Seeing the look of disappointment on Carl's face, however, Cindy hastens to explain… "Not unless I could have another Carl to hang out with everyday… to be my best friend… to talk to, joke with… laugh with… Your friendship's too important for me to risk, Carl…_(gently)_ in a lot of ways… you're actually too good for me…

Giving him a light peck on the cheek, Cindy saunters off. A dreamy Carl is soon joined by Sheen and Libby.

'She's amazing…'

"Who Cindy? My girl is a lot more than that… she is something else altogether…"

Carl quietly and reluctantly states the obvious, ' She… and Jimmy… would be perfect for each other…'

'HA! They'd talk each other mad within a week!' Sheen's comment earns him a pinch from Libby.

'So… when's the big date?' Carl attempts to change the subject, that he himself had brought up.

'TOMORROW!!!'

'Libby… isn't your family coming to visit for the weekend?'

"Oh yeah… Sheen… I'm so sorry, but I can't go out with you until they leave…"

'When will that be?'

"Monday?"

"No…………. how will I SURVIVE until then?" being in close proximity to Libby seems to be bringing out Sheen's dramatic side.

"Well… we could… try and matchmake Jimmy and Cindy." Carl is reluctant, but he knows that it's probably the only way Cindy is going to be truly happy.

"A Challenge!! I love it!"

'Libby… we'll need your help, of course…' Sheen seems eager to take charge of the "project".

"I'll do anything, to make sure my girl ends up with a GOOD man."

'Ex-cellent… here's what we'll do…'

As Sheen is motioning for the others to gather round, Eustace and Betty have their eye on another couple, or soon to be couple. Batman and Catwoman appear to be spending an inordinate amount of time together, with a considerable amount of blushes, giggling (on both parts) and flirting.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Jimmy is up early, and is having breakfast in the hotel restaurant alone. He's in a foul mood, having been haunted all night by a pair of bright green eyes. Frustrated, he's summoned his robot dog from Texas, and is having a conversation with it, drawing curious stares from the tourists and hotel staff.

"Love… can you believe it? Sheen was s… _cool_ this year… thinking only of his studies, and going on about landing a job in animation… and now? It's pathetic… How can a man fall in _love_, anyway?"

If Goddard could have rolled his mechanical eyes at that statement, he would have. Instead, he plays a clip of an eleven year old Jimmy at the candy bar, on one knee exclaiming, "I love you, Cindy Vortex.." Jimmy colors at the sight of this.

"That was the effect of the love potion, and you know it Goddard… lousy pheromones…"

'_Are you sure you would never end up in Sheen's position?'_ the words flash across Goddard's built in monitor.

"NO WAY…" Jimmy vehemently denies the possibility, before an image of a particular vivacious blonde appears in his mind, "well… I guess you never know… love MAY make an oyster of me… but until it does, it will NEVER make me such a fool… I see girls who are pretty everyday, and I'm not affected by them at all. Nice girls too… I guess if someone had ALL the qualities I wanted, it would be hard to resist, but… what are the probabilities of that?

'_What qualities might you be referring to?'_ If Goddard had lips, they would be twisted into a knowing smirk by now.

"Beautiful, of course… intelligent… honest… definitely not a player… someone kind and loyal but not sugary, in fact… someone who could stimulate me intellectually… someone passionate… and I like a little fire in a girl, you know… and she should be…"

'_Blonde?'_

Jimmy's eyes take on a dreamy look, before he catches himself and responds with dignity, "Her hair can be whatever color God wants…Uh-oh, Goddard, Carl and Mr Love are here… let's go hide. I just ate… don't need Sheen to turn my stomach with his 'I love Libby' nonsense…"

Clumsily, Jimmy hides behind a large potted plant. Spying Jimmy, Sheen leads Carl to the table directly in front of his 'camouflage' and proceeds to speak in a loud, pointed voice.

"Can you believe Cindy Vortex is actually in love with Jimmy?"

Sheen pauses, as they hear a loud choking sound coming from behind the potted plant. Sheen chuckles silently, while Carl forces a response.

'How.. do you know that, Sheen?'

"Libby told me… can you believe it… she acts like she hates him!"

'But are you SURE? Maybe she's… acting?'

"ACTING?!? YOU CAN'T COUNTERFEIT SUCH PASSION" Sheen is getting carried away, "Libby told me she's up all night, writing… and at the end of it… she cries herself to sleep, saying, Oh Jimmy… I'm sure you must have seen some signs while you lived with her, Carl?"

'S-signs…'

"Yeah… signs that she was thinking of him…"

'Well…' unable to think of anything to say, Carl pulls Sheen over, and pretends to whisper in his ear, while a curious Jimmy strains to hear. The tourist couple at the table next to him are now genuinely alarmed, and have requested a change of table.

"You AMAZE me, Carl… so… you think we should tell him?"

'NO…He'd only torment her further…' Carl's bitterness was genuine. He didn't know how he'd ended up in this situation; trying to help the girl of his dreams get together with his best friend…at one point the previous night it had all seemed so obvious to him… now, it was just downright annoying. Unfortunately for Carl, it was too late to back out. Sheen was not one to abandon an "evil mastermind plan for good," as he put it.

"But he's a GENIUS… surely he can see what a good catch she is…"

'Yeah… she's beautiful, smart, honest, loyal, passionate… kind and caring but not sugary…' Carl's voice was truly wistful, to the eavesdropping Jimmy's slight annoyance.

"AND she's smoking hot!" Sheen earned a glare from Carl and another from Jimmy with his remark.

'Sometimes I think Jimmy should just examine himself.. and see how little he actually deserves a girl like Cindy…' Again, Carl's remarks seem to be truly heartfelt, piercing Jimmy to the core. Sheen, hearing the heavy breathing from behind the plant, knows they have hit their mark, and cheerfully turns to Carl.

"Hey, isn't Cindy supposed to be joining us for a swim today? Let's go get Eustace and Betty, so we can go pick her up.."

'No, she's meeting us here… but she should be here pretty soon…let's go get our gear.'

The two friends make their way out of the restaurant, each whistling for a different reason. Sheen seems happy that his plan seems to be starting to work. Carl, on the other hand, is an 18 year old boy about to see the girl he's interested in wearing a bikini…meanwhile, Jimmy has gotten kicked out of the restaurant, and is pacing in the lobby, discussing the conversation he has just heard with his faithful mechanical canine.

"Can it be TRUE?"

'_Carl can't act…'_

"That's right… and it can't be a trick… they have the truth of it from LIBBY… She'd die before she let ANYONE play a trick involving Cindy…"

'_So, if it's not a trick, what are you going to do about it?'_

"I never thought…I mean she's so… beautiful… and smart… and sweet... well, not sugary sweet but sweet anyway… and thoughtful… and loyal… and passionate… and that flash in her eyes when we argue…Goddard… I think I love her too!"

'_So… you are a genius, after all'_ sarcasm had been programmed into Goddard when Jimmy turned 14.

"Goddard, access file 925C"

Goddard opens up his monitor, and picture after picture of Cindy appears on the screen. Jimmy himself had no idea he had accumulated so many of them, but now he looks over each and every one with a dreamy sigh, until he looks up to see the self same blonde in front of him, clad in a seafoam green bikini. He gulps, his blue eyes widening as he takes in her long, shapely legs, taut tummy, curvaceous torso, shiny blonde ponytail and flashing green eyes. He wills himself not to ogle, as he focuses his attention on her pink lips, twisted into a grimace that he somehow had always found endearing…

"Neutron, I've been sent against my will to call you to join us at the pool" Cindy's words are spoken through stiff lips. She turns to leave when Jimmy calls her by her name… a circumstance unusual enough to warrant a pause and a turn.

"Cindy… thanks for your pains…" Jimmy struggles to get out a coherent sentence.

The look in her eyes changes from shock to confusion. Pains? What IS he talking about…

"Er Neutron..I didn't take any pains to come here… if it had been painful, I wouldn't have come…"

'You take pleasure in the errand, then?'

"Yes, Neutron… about as much pleasure as I would take at a knife's point…" Cindy is growing impatient with Jimmy's inexplicable behavior. "Not coming, huh? I'll see you later, Neutron…" She turns and leaves, giving Jimmy the opportunity for a long, appreciative look at her… back.

"Against my will, I've been sent to call you… there's a double meaning in that!" Jimmy is exultant!

"_Whatever you say, Neutron."_ In response to Jimmy's egotistical remark, Goddard has played a video clip of Cindy rolling her eyes at him, recorded just before their high school graduation. With a dreamy grin, Jimmy sinks onto the hotel lobby couch, earning looks of concern and distance from the hotel concierge and manager. They both agree that the "strange kid with the blue eyes" would have been kicked out of the hotel hours before, if he hadn't been a guest of their best customer.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I know this chapter's really short, but I felt it ended on just the right note :)

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Cindy is back at the apartment, punching on her punching bag with ferocity only seen when she comes into contact with a certain James Isaac Neutron. All day, he'd stared at her with a strange expression on his face. Whenever she tried to talk to him, he would just smile and stammer out a response. He didn't even argue with her when she commented that Shakespeare was more of a genius than Einstein! The Jimmy she knew would NEVER have taken that comment lightly. Meanwhile, Libby has entered the apartment, accompanied by Susie, Lil, and Kimi. Hearing Cindy's grunts of frustration from her room, the girls purposely walk past her door, and start speaking in loud, Sheen like voices.

'Are you SURE, Libby, that this Jimmy guy is in love with Cindy?' Lil speaks on cue.

"That's what Carl says… and Sheen. You KNOW he wouldn't lie to me.." Libby responds loudly, as the sounds of grunting and punches suddenly stop.

'Why doesn't he just TELL her?'

"He's scared… he probably knows she doesn't feel the same way. I mean, she doesn't exactly hide it, ya know?"

'Yeah… you know how proud she is…'

"Kimi, why don't you like her?"

'I do… I think she's a great girl and a great friend… I just… sometimes wish she didn't have QUITE so many classes with Tommy…'

"Girl, you have NOTHING to be jealous about… Cindy would never steal someone else's man…"

'Besides, Tommy's been crazy about YOU since you were fourteen… remember how he got into that huge fight with Chuckie, just for wanting to ask you out?'

'Yeah… I guess I'm being silly… but seriously, Cindy doesn't seem capable of falling in love… she thinks she's too strong for all that…'

"She's just afraid to be vulnerable…… she's just… stubborn I guess, especially when it comes to Jimmy…" Libby responds in a far off voice. She's remembering a day, back in elementary school, two days after their infamous "news" show. Cindy had been sobbing into Libby's pillow, mumbling incoherent sentences about Neutron, an alley, the show, and Betty Quinlan. She'd refused to talk about what happened the next day, and Libby had cared too much for her friends' sanity to bring up the topic… it was, however, the last time she'd seen the chinks in Cindy's armor, particularly where James Isaac Neutron was concerned.

'Well, I think she'd be crazy to pass up a chance with a guy like Jimmy.'

"He WAS the hunk of Retroville high, Susie… except for Sheen, of course…"

'That reminds me… what're you wearing on your big date?' Lil had always been just a little fashion obsessed.

"Cindy helped me pick it out… you guys just HAVE to see it…"

Chattering, the girls head towards Libby's room, leaving a pink cheeked, breathless blonde sitting in a shocked slump on the floor of her room.

"He… he LOVES me? B-b-but… how? I thought he was always obsessed with Quinlan… everyone knows Sheen wouldn't dare to lie to Libby though… and Carl would never be involved in a trick that includes me…do they REALLY think I'm incapable of falling in love? I… guess that would explain his behavior today…. It would explain a lot, really…."

As Cindy sits on the floor, talking to herself, her fingers unconsciously move to the pendant around her neck. A single, perfect white pearl.


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Here's the next chapter :) Romance, I'm not sure whether to include what happened in this fic, or to write a proper companion fic when I'm done with this. We'll see whether I can squeeze it in. Btw when I read the play, I kind of sense that Beatrice and Benedick do have SOME sort of history that Shakespeare isn't telling us about. Acosta, thanks for your reviews. I value reader opinions : ) . On that note, please r/r. Reviews inspire me to write faster ;)

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Sheen and Carl return to Eustace's suite, after spending the day "sightseeing" with Cindy. This actually meant shopping, and being dragged to random bars and restaurants by an excited Cindy, insisting on showing Sheen the "absolute best" places to take Libby on their first date. Sheen already has his own ideas n what would be a perfect first date, but humours Cindy because: a) he wants to see if Libby's "conversation" with her friends had any effect, and b) there's really no stopping Cindy when she gets excited about something, anyway. Jimmy had disappeared that morning after breakfast, before even hearing their plans for the day. They find their missing "amigop" in the suite, surrounded by a pile of magazines.

"Man, Jim I TOLD you not to bring your "Astrophysics Weekly" magazines here… We're on VACATION!"

'Wait… is that… _Cosmo_?'

A flustered Jimmy turns bright red at Carl's 'revelation'. "W-what… how did THAT get there… er… heh heh…" Jimmy somehow manages to choke out a reply, wishing he had thought to pack his time machine… or an interdimensional portal…

"Dude, are you SURE you're straight?"

'Straight guys DO read Cosmo, Sheen…'

"Not straight Jimmies…"

"Er… Carl… your mom called while you guys were out…" Jimmy desperately tries to change the subject.

'Yeah… they want me to come back up to Retroville for a couple of weeks… My mom was pretty upset that I wasn't coming back this summer…'

"I-I _guess _we could go with you… that way we can still all hang out together, and to be honest I haven't been back since I started college, myself.." Sheen reluctantly suggests. He knows that Carl doesn't want to leave, but thinks that this is because he wants to spend time with his 'boys'. He does, but he also has another reason, that Sheen isn't quite aware of. Jimmy is just silent, looking at the floor.

'No, Sheen… I'd have to leave after your first date with Libby… you've been looking forward to being with her since elementary school… and you only have the summer to really bond as a couple… I'd hate to come between that,' Carl says gently. He brightens up considerably at a thought, 'But Jimmy could come!'

Jimmy suddenly starts to cough violently, before stammering out a response. "Er… I mean to say…that is…"

For the first time in the last few days, Carl has a small smile on his lips as he faces Jimmy. He knows Jimmy has no excuse not to go. 'Come on, Jimmy… you know you'll be a fifth wheel with Sheen and Libby and Betty and Eustace if I'm not around, anyway… you can barely stand Cindy, so you won't want to spend time with HER…'

At Carl's last comment, Jimmy, once again turns bright red. He's had his suspicions of Carl's not quite platonic feelings for Cindy, and has been none too happy about it. "Things change, Carl…"

'What's changed… Cindy hasn't changed…'

"But Jimmy has!" Sheen can't resist the opportunity to bait his friend. He deserved after the slew of ultralord related jokes hurled mercilessly at Sheen throughout the past year. "Revenge", thinks Sheen, is "sweeeeeeeeeeet".

"I've just become more mature, is all.." Jimmy manages to utter with dignity.

'In the space of two days… man, you grow up fast, Jim…'

"I think Jimmy has changed… I think he's SADDER"

'SADDER… that would explain the Cosmo…'

"But what about the haircut? Apparently SOMEONE'S been to the hotel barber for an overpriced 'do'…"

'Maybe he SAW that in the Cosmo…'

"Know what I think? I think Jimmy's in loooooove…" Sheen is clearly enjoying himself.

'Love…I just… got bored with having the same hairstyle since elementary school, that's all…'

"Yeah… and Cindy never liked it…" Sheen smirks.

"Cindy… who said anything about Cindy… can't a man cut his hair in this town without getting the third degree!"

'Someone's getting a little touchy…' Carl is beginning to get into the spirit of things.

"I have a toothache," Jimmy responds frostily.

"I didn't know you could sigh so much for a toothache, Jim," Sheen does an imitation of Jimmy's lovesick sighs.

"Easy for you to say… you don't have a toothache…"

"I think he's in love…"

At the sound of the word love, Carl and Jimmy blanch. The reality of the situation has just hit the two (former?) best friends. Jimmy is in LOVE with Cindy. The thought terrifies Jimmy and depresses Carl. He's always known, on some level, that there was an intense bond between Jimmy and Cindy, but he couldn't help being attracted to the feisty blonde, especially after being in such close proximity to her over the past year.

"I think… I think I need to go to the dentist." Jimmy practically dashes out of the room in terror. As he leaves, Sheen falls to the ground in a fit of laughter, while Carl halfheartedly joins him.

"What do you bet he's going to go looking for Cindy… just to pick a fight with her and prove me wrong?"

'I don't know, Sheen… I think this time, a part of him really wants this to happen… and he'll make sure it's different…'Carl, not Jimmy, has grown up in a short space of time.

As the boys discuss their friend, Eustace enters the room with his "partner in crime", Betty, stricken looks on their faces.

'Santiago, we must speak with you…'

"What's up, Eustace?" Sheen is in too amiable a mood to be distrusting.

'I know a part of you doesn't trust me, but I just HAVE to warn you… Liberty has not been faithful to you…'

"You expect me to believe THAT?"

'Eustace, that's pretty low… Libby would never cheat… she believes in commitment and honesty in a relationship…and she would never hurt Sheen…'

"But she and Sheen aren't in a relationship yet, are they? They've not even been on their first date.." Betty smirks at her two former classmates.

'Look, I've known Libby a long time, and probably loved her for just as long. It's going to take a lot more than two people I've only just started to spend time with to convince me that she's unfaithful…' Sheen seems to be taking the rational route, for once.

"I'll do better than that… just to prove that I truly have your best interests at heart, I'll take you to where she is, right now, on a park bench with another man…"

'Let's go…but I swear, Eustace, if this turns out to be a wild goose chase, your dad won't have to pay for braces anymore, because I'll straighten your teeth out for you.' A grim Sheen and Carl follow Eustace and Betty to Central Park. The sun is setting, obscuring their vision, but they can just see a tall, lithe, dark skinned girl sitting with a well built brunette.

"… I just couldn't take it anymore. I had to tell you how I feel. Everytime I pass by Juilliard, I crane my neck, hoping to see you…You're more than just a beautiful girl… you're smart, talented and the nicest girl I've ever met… I - mph"

The boy is interrupted mid speech with a kiss from his companion. Sheen, unable to take much more, has turned and left, with a shocked Carl chasing after him.


	7. Chapter 7

As Carl departs, Eustace and Betty begin to smile to themselves. Hand in hand, they head towards Eski, a new bar in the city where the counters are made entirely of ice. It was quite literally the "coolest" place to be. Meanwhile, two couples are already there, dancing up a storm, while a fifth member of the group watches sullenly from the bar, chugging jello shots bought with her fake ID. Having rich parents was convenient in the city. She's soon joined by one of the dancing couples.

"Angelica, WHY aren't you dancing?"

'Maybe I'm not in the mood, Pickles…' Angelica rolls her eyes at her cousin while glancing wistfully at the pair on the dance floor.

"Angelica… you really need to get over this… you know he's crazy about Lil… and you did have your chance…" Kimi is gentle, while her boyfriend rolls his eyes at his cousin.

'What're you implying, Finster?' The blonde narrows her eyes dangerously at her friend. Tommy, who knows his cousin will, gently maneuvers his girlfriend out of her way, mumbling a hasty excuse to his cousin.

"Kimi… you should know NOT to bring up what happened with Chuckie to her…"

'But look at her, she's spoiling everyone's night…'

"Not everyone's…" Tommy nods towards Lil's twin, who has just entered with Susie at his side. The sight of them together was hardly surprising to anyone there. What had gotten Tommy's attention was their entwined hands.

Meanwhile, Eustace and Betty had entered the club, and were toasting the success of their "enterprise" with cocktails at the bar. A hefty "tip" slipped into the hand of the bartender ensured that no ID was demanded, despite the lethal drink combinations that were ordered. Angelica watched them with interest; she knew Eustace vaguely from a country club dinner or debutante ball of some sorts, and wasn't sure whether to be disgusted or impressed with his blatant display of his wealth. She prided herself on being much more discreet. As she downed drink after drink, she couldn't help but watch the couple, whose already low inhibitions were lowered further with each drink. She thought she heard Susie's name in their conversation, and strained to listen.

'That was quite a stroke of luck, seeing that Susie girl at the party. She and Liberty do look remarkably similar.'

"It was, wasn't it… of course, we wouldn't have needed luck if you had succeeded in causing a quarrel between Sheen and Carl at the party itself."

'I almost did… but the lovely Cynthia had to spoil it.'

"The LOVELY Cynthia?"

'Jealous, are we?'

"Why would I be… She's definitely no match for me… as you well should know…" Betty looked at her billionaire boyfriend with a lascivious smirk.

'That she isn't, my dear…' Eustace leans towards the short haired brunette with a grin. Angelica rolls her eyes as Betty pulls him down to her. She is about to tune out when Eustace pulls away momentarily to ask his girlfriend a question.

'Out of curiosity my sweet… what did you stand to gain from all this, anyway?'

"Revenge" Betty smiles up with him with a sadistic yet seductive smirk that Angelica can't help but be impressed by.

'Revenge… against Cynthia, you mean?'

"Well, her too… but mainly against Libby… and Sheen…"

'Liberty and Santiago….whatever for?'

"Sheen was the ONLY guy in high school that I couldn't have... and I knew I couldn't have… Even Jimmy would have come around eventually… especially considering our _history_, but Sheen was a different story. He just wasn't interested… all throughout elementary school, middle school and high school, he only had eyes for one girl. Even when I cornered him in the boys locker room and kissed him, he just ran away.. he _ignored_ me…"

'Well… he must have been blind, my sweet…'

"Now, you tell me this… why did YOU want to attack Libby and Sheen… I thought it was Jimmy you hated…"

'Yes, but everyone EXPECTED me to go after James… had I tried to convince him of ANYTHING, he would never have believed me…and the lovely Cynthia would be even less likely to believe anything I said against him, even if she was angry with him. Since middle school, she always had this annoying habit of being able to see right through people. Besides, I am indirectly hurting Neutron… Cynthia will take Liberty's side in this inevitable argument, and will hate anyone even associated with Santiago. And I think we both know how that would affect James…' He meets his girlfriend's eyes with an evil smirk. Meanwhile, Angelica shrugs. She knows Libby, but doesn't know who this Sheen person is, nor what exactly the pair in front of her have arranged. They don't seem to be mentioning what Susie has to do with all this though. She shrugs and orders another shot. She's beginning to feel quite sorry for herself. Even Eustace, dweeb of the country club, seems to have found a soul mate… if he even had a soul, anyway. She downs her shot in one gulp, and has just ordered another, when she hears something else that catches her attention.

'Let's have a toast, shall we… to Susie and Philip…'

"Why them?"

'Because, my sweet… if we hadn't fortuitously seen them together at the park, we would never have been able to convince Santiago of Liberty's infidelity…'

"And if she didn't look so much like Libby, no one would have been fooled…"

'Precisely… so… a toast, shall we?'

"To Susie and Phil!"

'To Philip and Susie!'

Eustace and Betty clink their glasses, as comprehension dawns in Angelica's alcohol fogged brain.

'Must… remember to tell Tommy and the others…' she mutters to herself. Glancing at the happy couples among her friends, her eyes fall on a gangly red head, whose look of adoration directed at his girlfriend seems to make her physically ill. Turning firmly towards the bartender, she orders another shot.

Meanwhile, Jimmy has returned to the suite, relieved that his so-called friends weren't around. He paces the room, followed by his faithful mechanical canine.

"Goddard, options."

GO BACK IN TIME AND STAY ON THE ISLAND WITH HER

"Impractical. We'd miss out on an education, the opportunity to fulfill BOTH our potentials…"

GO BACK IN TIME TO THE DAY AFTER THE NEWS SHOW

"Already tried that… too risky. You don't know how that could change our futures…"

WRITE HER A POEM

"You know… that could work… she's a sucker for romance. Remember her reaction when Nick dedicated a song to her at prom? And it was a LAME song too…" Jimmy rolls his eyes, trying to ignore the wave of jealousy that is starting to gnaw at him. If he could, Goddard would have rolled his eyes as well. He remembered Jimmy's ranting and raving on prom night about Nick dancing with Cindy, about the "lame" song, about their being crowned prom king and queen… about how he didn't care because he was going to ask Betty out at Cindy's graduation party, anyway.

Three hours later, a frustrated Jimmy has still not noticed the conspicuous absence of his friends. He has littered the room with crumpled pieces of paper, and is once again venting his frustration on his hapless dog.

"This is USELESS, Goddard… I CAN'T do it… It CAN'T be done, I tell you…"

JIMMY NEUTRON IS GIVING UP?

"It CAN'T be done I tell you… the only word I can think of that rhymes with Cindy is… Windy… and Lindy… and… Bendy?"

If he was programmed to laugh, Goddard would have been rolling on the floor with amusement at the antics of his frustrated master.

"I think I should call the nanobots to help with this…"

YOU WANT THEM ERASING HER AGAIN?

"Good point… what do I do, Goddard?"

Goddard begins to play a song… that reminds Jimmy exactly of Cindy.

"That's it… I'll write out the lyrics, and tell her in a letter how they remind me of her… I'm a genius!" Jimmy pats himself on the back metaphorically.

YOU?

"I invented you, didn't I?" Jimmy hastily retorts before turning to his paper again, this time with renewed energy.

Meanwhile, in Cindy's apartment, a feisty blonde is strumming on her guitar, occasionally writing something on a piece of paper in front of her. Her roommate is curious, but knowing her friend, chooses to stay away for now. She knows that a false move would shove Cindy right back down the road of denial, and, in a defensive stance, would be capable of throwing whatever she was writing into the fireplace in an instant. She chooses to bide her time, knowing that she'll be able to sneak a look when the time comes. In any case, she needs to pack. She's spending the night with her parents in their hotel, before her big date, and Libby wants to be sure she looks absolutely perfect. She has been waiting eight years for this, after all.


	8. Chapter 8

On the day of Libby's big date with Sheen, Libby is dressed and ready to go half an hour early. She half expects Sheen to be already in the living room, chatting nervously with Cindy and waiting for her, nervously clutching a bouquet, a gift or both. Sheen's excitability was something she'd remembered from elementary school, and although she would probably have died before admitting it back then, she'd always found it cute… to say the least. She emerges from her room, an expectant smile on her face, only to see… Cindy. Alone.

"He's not here yet Libs…" Cindy has been repeating this routine with Libby every five minutes for the last half hour. Libby had wanted to wait in her room and make a "grand entrance". Unfortunately for Cindy, this meant being unable to read in peace, being constantly interrupted by her excited best friend for updates on her date's whereabouts.

'But… it's 6:45!'

"Your date WAS at seven…"

'He's SUPPOSED to be early…'

"I'll let you know when he's here…"

An hour later, Libby is starting to get upset, and a niggling worry is starting to pierce Cindy's mind. It was one thing for Sheen not to arrive early for his much anticipated date with Libby, but it was inconceivable that he should be LATE. From what Cindy knew of Sheen, nothing barring a life threatening accident, a kidnap by aliens or live sighting of Ultralord would cause Sheen to jeopardize THIS date. To reassure a tearful Libby, she picked up her phone to call Carl.

"Carl… where's your friend?"

'Who… Jimmy… I'm sure I have no idea…' Carl responds coolly. He STILL doesn't like talking about Jimmy to Cindy.

"Not Nerdtron… your hyperactive, Ultralord loving freak of a friend who had better be in a body cast right now, if he knows what's good for him…"

'Y-you mean Sheen… he's with me…' Carl responds in a quivering voice. He's imagining Cindy in her "butt-kicking" mode, as he liked to call it… and knew Sheen would be in for a world of hurt if he didn't try to help him.

"Oh… he's with you is he… and is there some reason why he's NOT HERE?!" Cindy's voice was dangerously low. Carl shuddered at her tone. He could imagine her standing in front of him, her green eyes narrowed, arms folded, eyebrow raised.

'He… just wants her to be happy… with the one she actually likes, Cind…' Carl responds quietly. He has to help his friend, no matter how much he dislikes disagreeing with Cindy. Sheen has already been uncharacteristically silent all day. He's hurting enough inside… and Carl wasn't going to let him be physically hurt by his black belted crush.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE ONE SHE LIKES, WHEEZER… THE TWO OF YOU HAD BETTER GET YOUR BUTTS BACK HERE AND EXPLAIN YOURSELVES BEFORE I…" she's interrupted by the slamming of Libby's room door. Her best friend has heard her end of the conversation, and has run to her room in tears.

'We both saw her kissing some other guy last night, Cind…'

"What do you mean you SAW her… were you guys drinking or something, Carl, Sheen should KNOW she wouldn't do anything like that… and so should you!"

'We thought we did… Sheen even threatened to punch Eustace's teeth in, before we both saw her… we couldn't both be wrong, Cindy…'

"It's got to be a misunderstanding, Carl… you HAVE to bring him here, to work it out… she's in her room, crying her eyes out!"

'Sorry, Cind… Sheen's hurting enough… you can't fake the passion that we saw yesterday… it was like Libby was in love with this guy, or something… I've never seen Sheen this heartbroken… and I'm not going to put him through anything else… I'm sorry Cind…' Carl is quiet. He knows Cindy is probably angry with him now, too, but Sheen's vacant, hollow stare has emboldened him. He knows Sheen should probably not be around Libby for awhile… what he doesn't know is what Libby still wanted with Sheen, when she already had that other guy, whoever he was.

Meanwhile, Jimmy has been watching his two best friends in amazement. The sight of Sheen worries him, too… but his logical mind refuses to believe that Libby would go out of her way to hurt Sheen like that. Libby had nothing to gain from stringing Sheen along, while dating someone else. Of course, his attempt at reasoning this out with Sheen and Carl was met with sad silence (Sheen) and a derisive snort (Carl). Sheen, he supposed, was too depressed to listen or think straight, but Carl… well Carl had been pretty hostile towards him for the past few days. He seemed unusually unreceptive to whatever Jimmy had to say. Jimmy knew there was only one way to get to the bottom of things… he took his jacket, whistled for Goddard, and left the suite.

At the apartment, Cindy is comforting Libby. A sense of déjà vu washes over her, as she strokes her best friends back, while she sobs and mutters incoherently into a pillow. When Libby drifts off to sleep, Cindy decides to take a walk downstairs, hoping the cool summer night would prevent her thoughts from drifting too far into the past…

As she sits on a bench, just in front of her building, she starts to remember high school…middle school… and elementary school…the way Libby and Sheen used to look at each other, dance together at school dances… flirt… but nothing really happened. She was also the only one who had known about the Betty Quinlan incident in senior year… Sheen had confided in her, and begged her not to tell Libby as "There's no point… she's moving on to bigger and better things, anyway…". It was so sad that after years of wishing, wanting and crossed signals, as things were FINALLY starting to happen between Libby and Sheen, something seemed to be getting in the way…the situation reminded her of a certain boy genius in elementary school…a night in an alley after a news show… and the Monday immediately after…Almost involuntarily, Cindy begins to sob softly into her hands. Suddenly, she feels a strong arm around her shoulder. Turning slowly, she finds herself looking into the blue eyes of one James Isaac Neutron.

'Been crying here all this time, Vortex?'

"Yeah, and I'll cry here awhile longer, Neutron…" Cindy managed a watery smile.

'I wouldn't want that…'

"Don't feel bad, Neutron… it's not your fault… well, not this time, anyway" Cindy gives him a wry smirk through her tears. The sight of the tearful blonde seems to tug at Jimmy's heart… he can't bear the thought of having been the cause of tears in those beautiful green eyes… hr manages a small half smile, before pulling her close into a hug.

'Isn't it strange…'

"Isn't what strange?"

'T-that I love you more than anything in this world… even science…'

"As strange as…. What happened with Libby and Sheen…" Cindy is still afraid to allow herself to be vulnerable, especially with him.. after seeing the look on his face, she softens slightly, " I guess… it would be POSSIBLE… for me to say that I loved nothing more than you… but… I'm not saying anything… I… I… I'm sorry for Libby… " red faced, Cindy looks down at her shoes.

For the first time in a long time, a genuine grin is starting to tug at the corners of Jimmy's mouth. He lifts her chin with his finger, and looks her straight in the eye.

'You love me, Cindy…'

"Stop it, Neutron…"

'You love me… and I'll personally beat up whoever says I don't love you…'

"So, you'll beat yourself up, Neutron?"

'I've been doing that for the last eight years, Cind' Jimmy grows quiet and serious, causing Cindy to breathe in sharply. 'I love you, Cindy…'

"Well, Neutron, you just interrupted before I could say that I love you too…"

'Then SAY it!' Jimmy has forgotten his purpose for coming over, in his excitement at the thought of FINALLY hearing Cindy say the words he'd secretly wanted to hear since elementary school.

"I-I love you too, James Isaac Neutron"

'Tell me something I can do for you, Cindy…'

"Do for me… what are you talking about, Jimmy?"

'You've just made me the happiest man on earth… and I want you to know I'll do ANYTHING for you…'

"Anything?"

'Anything…'

"Kill Sheen…"

'Except that…'

Rolling her eyes, Cindy gets up to leave. Jimmy pulls her back down, and looks into her flashing eyes.

"Let me GO, Neutron… you don't love me… you never did and never will… let me GO" Cindy struggles, glaring at him.

'Cindy…'

"Let me GO"

'We… could be friends first?'

"FRIENDS!?!" Cindy's green eyes flash with such rage that Jimmy involuntarily shudders. "You'd rather be my FRIEND than fight with SHEEN? After all these years, after EVERYTHING, you still just want to be FRIENDS??? You'll never change, Neutron…" by now, tears are starting to stream down her cheeks.

'Is Sheen the enemy, Cindy?'

"What else… he led her on, made her think he genuinely had feelings for him and then DUMPED her, just when things were about to actually HAPPEN between them… she was so happy, so excited and now she's completely crushed.. what do YOU think, Neutron?" Cindy gives him a look that makes him squirm. He knows that Cindy isn't only referring to Sheen and Libby. On impulse, he leans forward and kisses her on the forehead.

'I love you, Cindy… and I'm going to do whatever it takes to make everything OK. Consider it my way of showing you how wrong I was…'Removing his jacket and draping it around her shoulders, Jimmy gets up and walks off in search of Sheen and Carl, leaving Cindy alone on the bench, lightly touching her forehead in wonder.

AN: I know this isn't exactly what happens in the play, but I think some creative license should be allowed ;) besides, I personally don't think Sheen could ever be that big a jerk to Libby, no matter how mad he got. Please r/r! I promise the next chapter won't take as long to come out!


	9. Chapter 9

AN: Thanks for all the reviews guys… they inspire me ;) Romance; No, Cindy doesn't want him to kill Sheen… she's just upset. She doesn't even really want Jimmy to beat him up ;)

________________________________________________________________________Jimmy has returned to the suite, to find Carl and Sheen sitting on the couch. Sheen is alarmingly vacant…the last time Jimmy has seen Sheen looking this quiet was when Ultralord was on hiatus due to the writers strike. Like Carl, Jimmy is worried. However, he knows that he has made a promise to Cindy, and he has to try to keep it, somehow.

"Sheen… are you OK?"

'He's not going to answer, Jim… he's been like this since last night…' despite his current tension with Jimmy, Carl's overriding concern is for their friend.

"Sheen… why didn't you go for your date?" Jimmy is ignoring Carl and speaking directly to his friend. He knows that he needs to get Sheen to snap out of his depressive trance somehow.

'Because his DATE was in love with someone else! We SAW her, Jim..'

"Sheen… you know you could've cleared all this up by going and talking to her…"

'To what end… only to have her humiliate him further… she obviously liked this guy BEFORE agreeing to her date with Sheen… besides do you even know how it feels, to see the person you're crazy about looking like that at someone else… do you, Jimmy… he's hurt! And I don't blame him for wanting to avoid the person who caused that hurt!' Carl is red-faced. He gives Jimmy a death glare.

"You know Libby wouldn't do anything like that" Jimmy responds quietly. He knows Carl isn't just referring to Sheen and Libby, but isn't quite sure what to do about his own situation.

'I know what we BOTH saw, Jimmy… If you hadn't been off doing who knows what, you would have seen too…' Carl explodes.

"ENOUGH!"

Both boys are shocked into silence by their previously quiet companion.

"Jim… you don't know how it feels, to have loved someone for eight years, to FINALLY have a chance to work things out with them, and suddenly have everything snatched away, so don't you dare judge me." Fighting back the tears that have started to well up in his eyes, Sheen abruptly gets up to leave the room, followed by a concerned Carl. Jimmy, on the other hand, is just too shocked to join them. Sheen has always looked up to him, in a way, and he has never seen Sheen so angry. After a few moments of silent debate with himself, he decides it's best to leave Sheen to Carl for the moment, as he was clearly in no mood to think rationally. He also knows that it would probably be best to avoid Carl until things settled down with Sheen, as the evident tension between the two would probably cause more stress to Sheen. Sighing, he picked up his pen and paper, and headed to his room, to continue his song and letter to a green eyed blonde.

Meanwhile, Carl has followed Sheen to Central Park, where, sitting on a bench, Sheen has returned to his former catatonic state. Carl has no idea how to help his friend, and at this point, is wishing either Jimmy or Cindy was around to talk him out of his funk. As he tries to reassure Sheen that it's OK to talk about it, that he should let it go, and that there ARE other fish in the sea, he is unaware that the two of them are being watched by a feisty blonde.

Angelica Pickles was bored. Once again, her coupled up friends have invited her along on a picnic at Central Park, and this time, there wasn't even a bar to escape to. Surveying the summer crowd, she saw mostly nannies with their charges, or young couples. No one even remotely worth flirting with, until her gaze fell to a pair of teenaged boys sitting on a nearby bench. From their posture, they didn't appear to be a couple, although sometimes it was hard to tell. The tall, athletic looking Latino was clearly the more attractive of the two. Angelica did, however, have a weakness for red headed geeky types with freckles. After a quick glance at her canoodling friends, she decides to make a move. A little harmless flirting never hurt anyone.

"Is this seat taken?" Angelica bats her eyes at both boys. Carl glances up, and manages a half smile, while Sheen doesn't appear to notice her presence. Determined to get a reaction, Angelica sits down between the two friends, earning an irritated look from Carl.

'Look, lady, my friend is really upset about something, and I need to talk to him, so if you don't mind…'

"I'm not stopping you from talking, am I? He can hear you… unless I've walked in on a lovers quarrel…" Angelica is defiant. NO ONE ignored Angelica Pickles and got away with it.

'Let her stay, Carl…'

'Sheen… are you sure…'

'Yeah… I'm done hearing you talking about Libby anyway…'

"Wait… Sheen… Libby's Sheen?" Angelica is starting to remember a conversation she has overheard at a bar over the weekend…

'You know Libby?' Carl is amazed.

"Are you guys staying with Eustace Strych?"

'For the moment… I'm actually Cindy and Libby's housemate… How do YOU know that, though?'

"My cousin Tommy is in Cindy's class at college… and my best friend Susie knows Libby from Juilliard… wait… you're the Sheen Eustace and that skank were talking about!"

'Huh?' Hearing about Eustace has interested Sheen enough to snap him out of his stupor temporarily. 'What're you talking about?'

"Did you have a date with Libby yesterday…"

'Yes…' Now Sheen is suspicious.

"And did you see her apparently kissing someone else the day before?"

'Yes…'

"That wasn't Libby."

'It WAS her… I think I'd know her well enough considering I've LIVED with her for a year…' Carl feels the need to interject.

"Did Libby ever mention her classmate Susie, who looks a lot like her?"

The blood drains from Carl's face as he remembers Cindy and Libby mentioning a friend of theirs who apparently looked like Libby. He'd never met her though, as he'd been nervous to meet with Cindy's friends.

'She couldn't look THAT much like her…'

"Oh yeah… HEY SUZE!!!" Angelica called out to her friend, sitting at their picnic site not far off… Susie got up to join her friend, accompanied by Phil, who noticed the good looking Latino with Angelica and felt slightly threatened.

'So that's where you disappeared to…' Susie smiles at the boys, and turns to her friend with a knowing smile. She knows Angelica to be an incorrigible flirt, and hopes her conquest of two random guys in the park will take her mind off Chuckie. Phil notices Sheen staring at Susie, and puts his arm around her protectively.

At the sight of Susie and Phil, Carl turns pale. Sheen seems to have reached the same realization as him, as he is looking at the couple with horror. With a murderous yell, he gets up and rushes out of the park, chased by a concerned Carl.

'I'LL KILL HIM!!!'

"Sheen.. calm down…"

'I swear on the name of Ultralord… I'll pull out each one of those overgrown teeth…'

"Sheen… think about this for a second…" Carl is growing concerned. He knows when Sheen swears on Ultralord, he means business.

'HE MADE ME STAND UP LIBBY… LIBBY… THE GIRL I'VE LOVED SINCE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL!!! I'LL NEVER GET ANOTHER CHANCE WITH HER… AND IT'S ALL HIS FAULT!!!! I'LL BEAT HIM UP SO BAD EVEN HIS FATHER'S BILLIONS WON'T BE ABLE TO SAVE HIM!!!'

"And is that going to help you get Libby back?"

Carl crashes into his friend, who has suddenly stopped short with a sob. He sits down by the curb, his head in his hands, this time not even bothering to hide the tears that are starting to stream down his cheeks.


	10. Chapter 10

AN: Sorry for the late update!!!! Acosta: Yeah, I thought would be Carl a nervous about meeting Cindy's other friends… I always envisioned him as the shy type, somehow ;) Hope you're all enjoying this so far…

Meanwhile, Jimmy's hanging out in the lobby of Cindy, Libby and Carl's apartment building, staring dreamily into space. His goofy smile widens when he sees a leggy blonde in a pair of denim cutoffs, a green tank top and a familiar ponytail..

"So, you come whenever I call, huh, Vortex?"

'Yes, Neutron, and leave when you say, too…' Cindy rolls her eyes at the arrogance of her… boyfriend? She doesn't really know what they are to each other at this stage…

"Oh, but stay til then…" Jimmy decides to be theatrical, grabbing her hand and pressing it to his chest dramatically…

'You just said "then"… I'll be going now…' Cindy gets up and pretends to leave. Turning around, however, she sees the genuine disappointment in Jimmy's eyes, and decides to cut him some slack. She goes back to sit beside him. Automatically, he puts his arm around her, and she rests her head on his shoulder. They sit quietly for some time, simply enjoying each others presence, until Cindy speaks up with a small voice.

'Jimmy?'

"Hmmm…?" Jimmy is too comfortable to speak much.

'You didn't REALLY kill Sheen, did you?'

Looking at the genuine worry in her green eyes, Jimmy feels a tug of tenderness, mingled with regret. How had he let himself waste all these years, denying his feelings for this girl? "No… we just had some words, that's all… and with that, I'm going to kiss you…"

'Oh no you don't, Neutron…' laughing, she presses her finger on his descending lips. At the look of comic despair on his face, she can't help but laugh more, and snuggles against his chest further. She's just getting comfortable when she hears a loud cough and a giggle. Blushing, she jumps up from her seat.

Jimmy looks up in annoyance. He FINALLY has the girl of his dreams in his arms, and he has to be interrupted by a tall, smirking, sarcastic looking blonde (pretty, but nowhere near as beautiful as Cindy, in his opinion), a giggling short haired brunette and petite Asian, Libby, and… Libby? Two Libbys? Jimmy blinked, causing the girls (Cindy included) to laugh again at his confusion. Jimmy is momentarily distracted from his "double vision" by the sight of Cindy laughing… he'd always thought she looked especially beautiful when she laughed…

'You're not seeing double, Neutron… this is Susie… she and Libby DO look alike…'

"Wait… you're the one that Sheen saw in the park…" Jimmy is starting to piece the story together…

'Sure am… Sheen knows it now too… and he knows that Eustace and Betty are the ones that caused this whole mess in the first place…' Susie looks pleased. She's a romantic at heart, and had always wanted to see Libby reunited with her childhood sweetheart… who she'd been talking about non-stop since they'd started Juilliard.

"Eustace… and Betty… but… why Sheen?"

'We'll go upstairs and explain everything… that is… if you guys are done…' Angelica smirks at a blushing Jimmy and Cindy…

'W-well… I've got to hear this… coming, Neutron?'

"I will live in your heart, die at your feet and be buried in your eyes… Moreover, I will come up with you…" Jimmy is still in the mood to be theatrical, and earns an eye roll from a blushing Cindy. As he gets up to follow the group of girls, he swiftly takes Cindy's hand. She doesn't object as he interlaces his fingers with hers, making their way through the lobby towards the elevator.

An hour later, Jimmy has been kicked out of the apartment, after receiving a full explanation of the events that had taken place from Angelica and Susie. Libby is in a much better mood, as she realizes Sheen does care about her, after all. Jimmy's description of his despondency convinces even Cindy that he deserves a second chance. However, both Cindy and Angelica feel that he needs to squirm a little more before being allowed to see Libby. Hence: Jimmy's banishment. Cindy and Angelica wanted no boys around as they came up with their "Totally Awesome Plan of Revenge". As he makes his way down the street towards the Plaza, Jimmy can't help but feel sorry for his friend. Knowing Cindy, her plan would involve humiliation, pain or both. And he didn't like the looks of this Angelica person. She seemed even meaner than Cindy, during her bullying years, if that was even possible.

Meanwhile, Cindy and Angelica are bouncing ideas off each other. Libby was trying to protest: she really didn't WANT Sheen to be pelted with eggs, rotten tomatoes, beaten up by Cindy or made to wear a dress and walk through times square. She just wanted her date, and maybe an extra nice "make it up to me" surprise. Susie, knowing the futility of trying to stop her best friend when she was "plotting" would just roll her eyes. Lil and Kimi, on the other hand, were fascinated by the way the two blondes could think. If Tommy or Chuckie ever stepped out of line, they agreed that they would know who to call. The girls were interrupted, however, by a pounding door.

"LIBBY… LET ME IN!!!"

'Er… girls… we need to talk to you… and my key doesn't seem to work'

"LIBBY… I'M SO SORRY, BABY… JUST LET ME IN… I NEED TO TALK TO YOU…"

'Girls….? Sheen's kind of scaring me here… could you please let us in…'

Five of the six girls in the room burst into giggles at the sound of the two voices at the door. Libby moved to open it, but Angelica was too quick for her.

'Oh no you don't, Folfax…Lil, Kimi, Susie… bring her to her room… Vortex and I will handle this…'

The girls obediently dragged a reluctant Libby aside, while the two blondes, with matching gleams in their eyes and mischievous grins opened the door. A tall Latino tripped and landed on the floor, he'd been leaning against the door, pounding mercilessly.

"You going to pay for any damage, Estevez?" Cindy was cool… Sheen was her friend but he had committed the cardinal sin: He'd made Libby cry, and he HAD to pay.

"Cindy… where is she… I HAVE to see her… I HAVE to tell her how sorry I am… How I should have known that buck toothed bastard was pulling something… although why would he want to target me… it was always Jimmy he didn't like… although Quinlan might not have been happy about the fact that I didn't want to kiss her… but that was so long ago… and she's with Eustace now, she should have gotten over that… and where is she…?" Sheen was tearful as he rambled, making even Cindy and Angelica feel sorry for him. Carl, on the other hand, was quiet, as he observed Cindy. He'd missed her, and he knew she would be upset with him for not taking Libby's side immediately.

'You know he deceived us, Cin…we wouldn't believe him at first… but when we saw it with our own eyes, what were we supposed to think… Sheen even threatened to punch his teeth in…' Carl quietly explained what Cindy already knew. She was quiet, which both boys took as a good sign. 'Just let him speak to her… he needs to apologize.. and look at him…' Carl tried to remonstrate with Cindy, who looked to be softening. Angelica, on the other hand, was having none of it.

'Oh no… he can apologize to her at my party tomorrow… in front of everyone…'

"P-party?" Sheen is worried… he'd wanted his apology to be much more personal.

'A costume party… 7pm… Cindy here will text you the address…'

"And… you have to sing a song…" Cindy has a wicked grin, as Carl pales. He's remembering the Twonkies incident in elementary school, where Sheen's "singing" had broken practically every pane of glass in town.

'Fine…'

"Fine?"

'Anything for Libby' Sheen responded simply. As the boys turned to leave, Carl's heart thumped wildly, as he caught sight of a faint smile of approval on Cindy's lips.


	11. Chapter 11

AN: Romance: I love that line too! Well… I love the whole play, really. :)

As Sheen and Carl leave, a smirking Cindy and Angelica turn towards their confused friends.

'A COSTUME party, Angelica… we just had one!'

'I thought you guys were just going to make him squirm… now he has to SING, too?'

'How're we going to throw together a party at the last minute, anyway?'

'Is this some lame excuse to dress up as Catwoman and come on to Chuckie, again? Because if you do, I swear…'

Lil's last comment makes Angelica blush ever so slightly. Honestly, Chuckie's rejection should have been punishment enough… Lil didn't HAVE to bring that embarrassing incident up every other minute, did she? They were SUPPOSED to have moved past all that… She chooses to turn squarely to Susie instead. 'That's what party planners are for, Carmichael…besides… Cindy here thought Sheen deserved a little test…'

At the familiar smirk on her best friends' face, Libby feels her stomach tighten. If Sheen didn't pass Cindy's "test"… the next three months would be torture.

"Well… it's not just a test for Sheen… as much as a way to play a SMALL, TINY trick on our boys…"

'OUR boys, huh…'

"Shut up, Libs… do you want to hear this, or not?"

Curious… the girls huddle together to listen as Cindy whispers. Angelica, meanwhile, heads down to pick up the only two boys welcome at all girl only"party planning- boy bashing" sessions everywhere – Ben and Jerry.

A few minutes later, the girls are lounging in the apartment with bowls of Cookie Dough and New York Fudge, working out logistics. Even Libby is looking forward to seeing Sheen… and Tommy, Chuckie, Phil and Jimmy's reactions to their costumes. If she knows Sheen, he's liable to have a heart attack. Or scream so loud, he'd cause everyone else in the room to have one. And Jimmy… Libby doesn't even want to imagine what he'd do…

Meanwhile, Sheen and Carl have met up with Jimmy in their suite. Sheen is still keen to straighten the teeth of their host, who doesn't appear to be answering his phone. After some mumbled apologies among themselves, the three best friends begin to pack… there's no way they're staying HERE, after what he did to them. They do have their pride, after all. Glumly, they carry their bags out, and begin to search for cheap motels to crash in… at least until Sheen has obtained the goodwill of Cindy and Libby. Being the beginning of summer, all the hostels seem to be full. Dejectedly, they sit with their things in the park, when they are approached by a handsome, spiky haired teen.

"Jimmy Neutron? Sheen Estevez? Carl Wheezer?"

The three boys narrow their eyes suspiciously. He didn't LOOK like a mugger/murderer/drug dealer/terrorist, but in this day and age, it was hard to tell.

"Tommy Pickles… little bird told me you'd probably need a place to stay for the night…"

'Tommy… Pickles? Cindy's Tommy?' Carl eyes the boy curiously. He's heard from Cindy about her best school friend, but again, had been too nervous to meet him. Jimmy, however, turns red and glares at the smiling boy in front of him.

"Cindy's Tommy?" His voice is hard.

'Cindy's best FRIEND, Tommy… we're classmates…'

"I see…" Jimmy doesn't look convinced. Or happy.

'Dude, you were saying something about a place to stay?' Sheen is impatient. The last thing he wants is to have to crash on a park bench because Jimmy has a complex.

"You guys can crash on our couch… Chuck and Phil won't mind…"

"This is really decent of you…" Carl reaches out to shake his hand. The mere thought of sleeping outdoors was starting to cause his allergies to act up. Sheen holds out a fist to punch, nodding in assent. Jimmy, however, hangs back, a scowl on his face.

'You're really Cindy's… _friend_?'

"No… I just dreamed up your names, and decided to kidnap three obviously penniless students." Tommy rolls his eyes. This Jimmy person was SUPPOSED to be a genius. "Of course, if you PREFER the park bench…" He trails off meaningfully.

"I'll come" a grudging mutter is heard from Jimmy's general area.

"Sorry… what did you say, Jim?" Even Carl is enjoying this.

"I SAID I'll come… I mean… thanks… I guess…" Jimmy reluctantly holds out a fist for Tommy to punch. Suppressing his grin, Tommy proceeds to lead the way. Jimmy quickens his pace to walk alongside him, while Sheen and Carl lag behind.

"How'd you know about us, anyway?"

"I told you, a little bird called me up, and told me you guys might need a place to crash." Although his tone is light, something in his smile causes Jimmy to stop short for a moment, and smile softly as he starts to understand.

"Jimmy…"

"Yeah…?"

"Don't hurt her again…" Tommy carries on walking, as Jimmy stops short once again, causing Sheen to crash right into him. The three best friends from Retroville hurry to catch up, each thinking of what the next day would bring.

AN: I know it's a short chapter, but I think it's a good spot to end. Please r/r!


	12. Chapter 12

AN: Egoxlockheart: Sorry… I guess I wasn't very clear on why he's smiling… three guesses who Tommy's "bird" is! Hope you guys like this chap… and keep an eye out for some more guest appearances ;)

On the day of the party, all the boys are nervous, for different reasons. Sheen knows his singing has improved since elementary school, but this time he's singing for LIBBY. For all he knows, she might start throwing rotten tomatoes at him, while he's singing. Jimmy, on the other hand, wants to know where he stands with Cindy. She may SAY she loves him, but she's surrounded by good looking guys who are apparently willing to put perfect strangers up in their apartment at a single request from her. And even if they had girlfriends, they'd probably dump them in a second if they had a half chance with a girl like Cindy (Jimmy doesn't THINK he's being biased, here… really.) There was also a worrying rumor about Nick Dean moving to New York to pursue a career as a DJ. Newly single Nick Dean. He kept telling himself not to be TOO nervous, though. He had it on good authority that she DID love him. He thinks. Carl, on the other hand, is nervous at the thought of seeing Cindy. He and Jimmy have called a semi-truce, and he doesn't know what he's going to do if he actually has to SEE them together. He doesn't want his friendship with Jimmy AND his friendship with Cindy to suffer… yet, he can't help the way he feels. He is looking forward to seeing Cindy though, probably in another amazing costume.

Meanwhile, the girls are in high spirits. There had been vociferous debates about the actual costumes they would wear. Angelica had been vocal about Catwoman: she'd missed out on the opportunity once, and didn't want to again. Cindy's Arabian Nights idea had won out, though. The girls are dressed in identical harem pants and filmy tops, and their faces were veiled. Because of their similar coloring, it would be difficult to tell Cindy and Angelica apart, and virtually impossible to differentiate Susie and Libby. They've taken recreational belly dancing classes for the last month, and are all thrilled at the opportunity to show off a little.

"Tommy is going to DIE when he sees this" Kimi smirks in satisfaction.

'And your brother is going to have to pick his tongue off the floor' Lil smiles at her reflection as she twirls in front of a mirror. She doesn't notice the slight frown of dissatisfaction in Angelica's brown eyes.

"What if he can't tell us apart, Cind…"

'He will…'

"Even I can't tell us apart… in this get-up, Susie and I look like twins… I don't think our own mothers could tell the difference…"

'What're you afraid of, Folfax… that you might end up making out with Deville by mistake?' Angelica smirks, earning twin glares from Susie and Libby.

'Libs… just relax and try to have fun. You know Sheen…'

"Yeah.. I do…" Libby stares dreamily into space, only to squeal as she feels herself being pelted with pillows in all directions.

As the boys arrive, they wonder at being let in by a handsome blonde boy with green eyes and a slightly oblong head, dressed as a matador. His arm was protectively wrapped around the waist of a blonde girl, in a long sleeved Juliet dress.

'Hey guys, Angelica told us to let everyone in, apparently she and her friends are busy preparing for something' the boy greeted them with an easygoing smile.

"Ya think you might have started by introducing yourself, football head.." the girl dressed as Juliet turned to her boyfriend with a teasing smile.

'I'm Arnold, and this is Helga… we're classmates of Angelica's' Arnold rolls his eyes and stretches his free hand to Jimmy.

"You're the ones who keep getting caught kissing in the library…Angelica told us about you!" Phil grins at the blushing pair.

'Er… where is she, anyway… and are all her friends with her?' Tommy senses the discomfort of the boy in front of him. Unfortunately, his question about her friends earns him a glare from a slightly disgruntled Jimmy. Before he can speak, however, a voice blares from the DJ console… a very familiar, and to Jimmy, a very unwelcome voice.

"Dudes and dudettes… we have two very special performances tonight. First, we have a singer all the way from Texas… now I know we're here to rock, but let's give a hand to Shine Estevez…"

Sheen gulps as he makes his way towards the makeshift dance floor. He scans the crowd for Libby, but can't find her. Shaking, he clutches a mike proffered to him by he DJ, a former elementary school classmate, and begins to speak.

"Libby, I know you're here… and I don't know why you're not coming out, but I just want you to know that I'm sorry. I'd never hurt you on purpose, and… well… I love you and just want a second chance."

From Angelica's room, Libby stifles a sob. Cindy rubs her back as, teary eyed, she peeks out from behind the room door, where they have a perfect view of the dance floor. Cindy's comforting look turns to one of shock, as Sheen starts to sing.

"_From the day that I met you girl, _

_I knew your love would be_

_Everything I ever wanted in my life.._

_From the moment you spoke my name_

_I knew everything had changed_

_Because of you I felt my life would be complete_

_Oh baby I need you_

_For the rest of my life girl, I need you_

_To make everything right girl_

_I love you_

_And I'll never deny that I love you"_

He's interrupted by a loud sob coming from the room door. He stops and stares, hoping for a response, any response. The DJ clears his throat and makes another announcement.

"Er… ok… well the girls just texted me, and says Shine here has to pick out Libby from among them, if he wants his girl… I mean, how hard is that, right?" Nick Dean scoffs from behind the DJ console. Jimmy, Carl, Tommy, Chuckie and Phil, too think this is a relatively mild punishment, for Cindy and Angelica's standards. Their relived laughter turns to shock as the girls shimmy out of the room. Nick breaks off in mid laugh, emitting a braying sound into the microphone.

"DUDE… I mean… WOW… I mean… man Shine… go ahead…"

Sheen confidently walks past Cindy, Angelica, Kimi and Lil, and pauses in front of Libby and Susie. He looks deeply into both pairs of eyes, causing Phil to clench his fist slightly. He understands that Sheen doesn't really have a choice in the matter, but he doesn't like the thought of Sheen examining his girl (and he knows ONE of them is his girl) so closely. Suddenly, Sheen reaches out, and pulls one of the girls to him, removing her veil and kissing her full on the lips. Phil scowls; he still can't see who it is that Sheen has kissed.

All the other boys in their little group cross their fingers and say a silent prayer, for different reasons. Tommy and Chuckie don't know what their hot headed friend would do, if it turned out that Sheen had accidentally kissed Susie. They did NOT want to be breaking up a fight. Meanwhile, Carl and Jimmy just wanted Sheen to get the girl…Despite Jimmy's earlier objections, he knew deep down how Sheen had felt about Libby since elementary school.

When Sheen finally breaks the kiss, he moves back, blushing slightly. The tall girl in front of him is smiling, with tears in her eyes that he gently wipes with his thumb. All around them, the girls, led by Cindy, start to clap, causing five boys in the audience to heave huge sighs of relief.

AN: The song is "I Need You" by Marc Anthony. Thought Sheen should represent a little. r/r!


	13. Chapter 13

AN: Romance & Musicals : I love old Nick too… hope I'm not going overboard with all the crossover characters!

Nick begins to mix a fast tune that has an Arabian beat to it. From the DJ console, he eyes the sharp tongued blonde who had attracted him since high school. She'd gone out with him once (to the prom) but had turned down all subsequent advances. Seeing her groove with her gaggle of girlfriends makes him renew his determination to make this trip to New York count.

Meanwhile, Jimmy, Carl, Tommy, Chuckie and Phil are standing just in front of the dance floor, watching the girls wiggle and shake to the beat with… admiration. Each boy had an eye on a particular girl, moving sensuously in her exotic costume, clearly enjoying the "view". Sheen and Libby have danced off together. Despite the upbeat tempo of the song, Libby has her arms wrapped around his neck, and is resting her head on his shoulder as they sway together. Cindy glimpses them out of the corner of her eye and grins. For Libby to completely disregard the beat of a song, she must REALLY be in love. Happy for her friend, she executes a complicated hip swaying turn which causes three boys watching her to gasp.

Jimmy, extremely impressed, would have been content to stand by the dance floor, nursing a coke and watch her dance, when he notices that the DJ console is now being manned by a lanky, pimply teenager. His smooth predecessor is now conspicuously making his way towards the group of girls. In a panic, Jimmy rushes to the DJ console, grabs the microphone and yells, "STOP!"

The music halts, as party guests stop moving and turn curiously towards the red faced, blue eyed genius with the microphone. He scans the crowd for Cindy, and notices that she seems to have disappeared.

'Er… where's Cindy?'

A red faced Cindy is shoved to the centre of the dance floor by her giggling friends.

"Ahem… I answer to that name." Cindy responds primly. "What's your will?"

Taken aback by her sudden appearance, Jimmy is at a loss for words. Her pink cheeks distract him, and he really doesn't know why he commandeered the microphone in the first place. He does know that they haven't really discussed their relationship, nor acted like a couple in front of others.

'Er… er… you love me, don't you?'

"WHAT?! Neutron!!!" Cindy is flustered, and pretty upset at being put on the spot in public like this. " No way!"

Jimmy blushes as the crowd roars with laughter. 'Well Sheen and Carl must be mistaken then, as they swore you did…'

"No… don't YOU love ME though?" Cindy is annoyed… and starting to get suspicious.

'No way, Vortex'

"Well, then Libby, Lil. Kimi and Susie must be mistaken, as they swore YOU did."

Lil, Kimi and Susie look down and scuff their toes in response to the questioning stares from their boyfriends. Meanwhile, Carl is watching this conversation with avid interest. In the space of a few minutes, he knows, he is either going to be deliriously happy, or have his heart broken.

'They said you were practically sick for me!' Jimmy is walking towards Cindy as he speaks, his voice raised in indignation.

"They said you were almost dead for me!" Cindy, too, has taken a step towards him. They're standing nose to nose, both flushed with embarrassment, anger and… disappointment.

Jimmy looks down at her glinting green eyes and feels his stomach drop. It was all a trick. She didn't love him. Not anymore.

'Y-you… don't love me?' He doesn't dare look her in the eye, for fear of confirming this.

"Er no… not as more than a friend…" Cindy is stubborn. She doesn't want to get hurt again, and she knows the only way to ensure this is by not letting herself fall.

Silence ensues. Cindy looks up at Jimmy and feels a flash of indignation. All those things he'd been saying to her for the past couple of days were out of pity? "And… you don't love me…" she speaks flatly, almost as if steeling herself for the answer.

'No… not as more than a friend' Jimmy spits out, bitter. He KNEW he'd been right to stay away all those years. He KNEW he shouldn't have come out here. He KNEW he'd be sucked in again, and have to spend another eight years TRYING to get over her.

Meanwhile Sheen is getting frustrated. His friends' stubbornness was ruining his Evil Mastermind Plan, and he was NOT going to take this lying down. Striding towards the two, who are now glaring at each other, again, Sheen produces a piece of paper from his pocket, causing Jimmy to turn pale.

'Well… I know HE loves YOU, anyway, check out what I stole from his duffel bag. It's got "To Cindy" written on the envelope so I'm guessing it's OK for you to read it…'

There weren't many times when Jimmy actually wanted to physically hurt Sheen. Even when Sheen had caused an explosion in the lab by plugging an Ultralord Virtual Reality console with faulty wiring into his main electrical framework, Jimmy had only yelled. This time, however, the urge to punch him in the nose was difficult to control.

'Sheen… outside… NOW!' Jimmy is red faced with anger. For a minute, Sheen, Libby and Carl remember Jimmy's angry hulk like figure when he was exposed to Van Patton radiation. Cindy is too giddy with joy to notice, and grabs the envelope from Sheen.

'And I know SHE loves you too… I got this from her room…' Libby feels the need to salvage the situation before her new boyfriend (she loves that word) is punched out before their first official date. Forgetting Sheen, Jimmy grabs the paper proffered by Libby, feeling real hope rising in his chest as he sees his name in Cindy's neat cursive writing.

They read each others' writing silently, smiling slowly as they progress. When they finish, they turn towards each other, blushing, both unsure as to what to say. Jimmy takes a step forward.

"Look, Neutr-" Cindy is cut off by Jimmy's lips crashing into hers. As applause rings all around them, she wraps her arms around his neck, and deepens the kiss, before pulling away and ducking her head shyly.

'May I have this dance, m'lady?'

The DJ begins to play a slow song, as the couples begin to pair off and dance. Scanning the crowd, Angelica Pickles approaches a slightly geeky looking redhead with freckles and glasses.

"Wanna dance, Wheezer?"

As they make their way across the dance floor, they pass a blonde, holding on to her new boyfriend and smiling at him with genuine affection.

'You DO know I only asked you to dance for pity, right…'

"Well, I'm only dancing with you after GREAT persuasion.. .and partly to save your life, as I WAS told you were in a consumption." Cindy grins; she will NEVER let him have the last word.

'There's only one way to shut you up, Vortex..' Jimmy leans down and pulls her into a kiss.

"You OK, Wheezer?"

'Yeah… I guess she's not the only feisty blonde fish in the sea.' Carl grins at his dance partner. Watching the scene before him has brought a new perspective on his feelings for Cindy, and he is genuinely happy for his two best friends.

"I always had a thing for red headed geeks, myself…" Angelica grins back. As they twirl across the dance floor, she notices a discreet thumbs up flashed from behind Phil's back. Winking at Susie, she settles against Carl's surprisingly comfortable shoulder.

**AN: IT'S OVER!!!! *SOBS* please r/r, and let me know if you'd be interested in a) a companion fic about what happened between Cindy and Jimmy in elementary school b) a sequel, possibly involving Nick, or more Eustace c) another fic, this time based on the Merchant of Venice or Twelfth Night. :) **


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